


Monster

by Shaderose



Series: Parkner Week 2020! [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Canon Character Death Discussed, Canonical Character Death, Day 1 bb!!!, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Future AU, Future Fic, Harley Keener Needs a Hug, Hurt/Comfort, Its not shown tho, M/M, Parkner Week 2020, Parkner are parents :'), Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Time Travel, Tony Stark Acting as Harley Keener's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:42:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25630756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shaderose/pseuds/Shaderose
Summary: He releases a shuttering breath, takes a wobbly step back on legs that feel like they'll give out at any second, grasps on tightly to the table beside him to hold him upright as his gaze is still locked into the image still in front of him, still existent, still real even though it couldn't be, it was too good to be true, but it was.He places his free hand hand over his mouth, his lips pulling at his cheeks as his smiles so unbelievably wide, tears slipping into his mouth unbeknownst to him because- he did it. He really did it.Harley had found a way to recreate time travel. He had hischance.~~“2029, that’s not a real year”/time travel/future au~~"Delirium takes over me, you're just another causalityI can hear your heartbeat drumminI need a fight, I got you in my sightsOnly one of us will make it out alive..."
Relationships: Harley Keener & Tony Stark, Harley Keener/Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Parkner Week 2020! [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857949
Comments: 16
Kudos: 90
Collections: Parkner Week 2020





	Monster

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Parkner Week 2020 everybody!!!  
> I've been writing these fics since the last week of July, and I'm so excited for yall to see them! Try and see if you can spot the trend for each of my fics during the week ;)  
> We're starting off the week with a fic thats... barely parkner at all! Oops? Don't worry though, there's only about two, maybe three of these days that are more "Irondad with Harley" than parkner. The rest will be pure parkner goodness (and sadness too ;P)
> 
> With all that being said, I hope you all enjoy!! 💞💞

The tools he was subconsciously fidgeting with fall to the floor with a few loud bangs, and theres a quick thought of "oh shit, Jax" before its gone and the overwhelming reality of his situation smacks him in the face and floods his mind. This, this can't be real, he reasons, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped, his vision blurry from sudden tears as he stares at the hologram in front of his own two eyes. Blinks, ignoring the tracks that run down his cheeks, rubs his eyes hard, checks again. Because it _can't be true_ , but the hologram still says "successful", still shows the 99.73% chance of working, still gleams in a bright green glow and illumates the entire room.

He releases a shuttering breath, takes a wobbly step back on legs that feel like they'll give out at any second, grasps on tightly to the table beside him to hold him upright as his gaze is still locked into the image still in front of him, still existent, still _real_ even though it couldn't be, it was too good to be true, but it _was._

He places his free hand hand over his mouth, his lips pulling at his cheeks as his smiles so unbelievably wide, tears slipping into his mouth unbeknownst to him because- he did it. He really did it.

Harley had found a way to recreate time travel. He had his _chance_.

Eleven years ago, Harley had disappeared into ashes and dust, had _died_ along with half of the entire planet, the entire _universe_. Six years ago, he had returned, lost and confused, only to find his house in shambles, his mother dead and that Tony Stark- the man that had saved his life once upon a time- had done it again, along with everyone else by snapping the infinity stones and bringing everyone back, losing his own life in the process. A few days after that, he was called by Pepper Potts herself- or, Pepper Stark now, he later discovers- to tell him the news, and personally invite him to his funeral. A few weeks, and he was on a plane, then in a car, then surrounded by people, heroes in which he didn't know, seemingly the only non-powered kid there, outside of _Tony Stark's daughter_.

Six years ago, Harley Keener met one Peter Parker, and everything fell into place. Everything that was once dark, cloudy, uncertain after a whole five years of being gone, was now bright, sunny, and _hopeful_. They were at a funeral, sure, but Harley just knew that they were meant to be. They just clicked, and as the days, weeks, months, and _years_ went on, they had grown together. First through their grief, then their confusion, their bitterness, fustration and anger at a world that had moved on without them, then through their connection, their _love_. They had talked through messages and even hand written letters when they were 16, 17, they had went to university together when they were 18, 19, moved in together when they were 20, 21, and adopted their Jackson, or Jax as they called him, when they were 22, 23. They were soulmates since the moment they met, had found each other when they needed each other most, and Harley had always said, always _known_ that it was Tony who had put them together, who had put them in the same place and gifted them with the other, and Harley couldn't have been more thankful.

And yet... Harley couldn't get this stupid idea out of his head. He had gotten it the first year after, when he had drank away his sorrows and clambered to the lab, throwing things out of the closet, _Tony's_ closet in a fit of passion, of agony and loss, until he had stumbled upon two glass tubes full of a vibrant red liquid and had frozen solid, like a deer in the headlights, an idea, a _plan_ forming in his head. He had scribbled down everything he could think of, he drew what he remembered of the way the time portal had looked, had rambled to Peter about once he had come home from his patrol- his coping mechanism of the time- trying to think of ways to recreate the very time machine Tony had recreated to go back to retrieve the stones, only instead of getting stones, they'd be saving _him_ , saving _T_ _onys life_ and it would be _great_.

But, then he remembers how Peter had shut it down then and there, how _upset_ the other man had gotten, thinking Harley was insane, telling him of all the things that could go wrong, of how it could change the entire outcome of the universe, and then, once he recognized how drunk Harley truly was, had dragged him to bed and given him an ultimatum in the morning, had told him to forget the idea in the morning, or else they were over. And Harley _had_ forgotten about it for a while, had put it into the back of his mind and tried to focus on the here and the now, tried to focus on their relationship, on Peter, on his _kid,_ on their lives... but he just couldn't get it out of his mind. Not completely. It was like an itch he couldn't scratch, that just grew more and more itchy the longer he ignored it. When he had proposed to Peter underneath the stars, at a candlelight dinner, and they had called all of their family afterwards, he had felt a pang in his heart. When he had gotten married to the man of his dreams in the forest, surrounded by their family and friends, he had ached, knowing Tony would've been in the front seat, probably crying like a baby, even though he'd never admit it. When they had adopted little Jax, and gotten to hold their baby for the first time, Harley had _yearned_ , aching for the father figure in his life to help give him advice, to help tell him what to do, to _be there_ at all. Even though Tony and Harley hasn't been close before everything, he had always wanted Tony to be there for these steps of his life, and he knew, _knew_ that Tony had wanted it too. He wanted to rant to him about his crush, wanted to ask for his hand, wanted him to walk him down the aisle, wanted him to teach him how to be a _dad,_ wanted to tell him all _about_ Jax and his quirks, his first steps, _"He's babbling now, Tony, it's the cutest sound you'll ever hear!"_ and he just...

He hears footsteps walking down the hall, and Harley's breath hicks. His gaze shifts to the two smaller tubes on full display on his desk, just beside the reactor for Iron Lad suit that he had upgraded for this exact situation, just in case this moment ever happened. He hears Peter call his name, sounding a little worried, and his gut drops, his heart beating like stallion galloping in an open field. He doesn't think as he grabs the reactor, sticking it to his chest and pressing it, feeling the nanites fall into place over his skin as he also grabs the tubes, putting one into the canister and the other into a holding area, for his way back, before racing to the platform and hovering his finger over the button, the system already set to bring him back to April 15th, 2023.

He _knew_ Peter would be upset, and might hate him, might _leave him_ for this but... he had a _chance_ , and he just _couldn't let it go_. He squeezes his eyes shut, feels more liquid slip down his cheeks, silently begs for forgiveness before pushing the button just as his helmet falls in front of his face, Peter's face, full of unbridled _f_ _ear_ being the last thing he sees, a scream of his name being the last thing he hears before he shrinks, collapsing again and again as he weaves through tunnels of nothing, of time, he assumes, his eyes narrowing and his teeth clenching as his body is bashed around by the wind and speed of his decent, until suddenly he's on the ground again, on all fours, his hands and feet grabbing onto dirt and surrounded by dust particles floating in the air. Harley gasps, panting out fast breathes as he sits up, and turns to look behind him, his mask retracting instinctively as he sees the ruins of the Avengers Compound, and loses his breath again.

He's here, holy shit, he's _here,_ he's _doing this_ , oh my god Peter was going to _kill him._

His head whips around as he hears a loud yell, multiple yells, and then screaming, sounds of weapons clashing and fists thumping, people _fighting_ , and it brings him right back into his reality, his helmet returning over his face as he creeps forward, around the rock (or scrap of compound, Harley couldn't tell) that he was hiding behind to see the battle firsthand, the allies matched by the enemies one for one. From here, Harley can see Black Panther, T'Challa swiping at an aliens ankles before jumping on top of him and slitting his throat, while his sister Shuri is beside him, shooting lasers the smaller ones rushing beside them. A wizard is using a magic rope against _another_ alien creature, holding it down while a... goose? Duck? Burns its face with a cigar. Harley doesn't know why he's surprised at that, he's seen weirder in his years, but he shakes it off quickly, whispering for his AI, TON-EE, to track and find her namesake.

He can't be seen, he knows that much. Iron Lad didn't exist at this time, Harley wasn't apart of the battle, and now, as he watches it take place all around him, smells the sharp bitterness in their air, breathes in particles and coughs out soot, he's sort of thankful that he wasn't, a complete contrast to the nights, the _years_ spend wishing that he _was_. 

TON-EE beeps at him, and then a map comes up, of one large red dot surrounded by what looks like a million tiny white ones, all allies and enemies, and when it zooms out, Harley can see its right in the middle, right where all of the action is. Of course Tony could be there, in the hardest place possible for him to get to. He's gotta make things harder for him, even after death. Or, before death? Whatever, it doesn't matter. Or, it won't, if Harley gets his way.

He's just gotta get there now. He can hear the battle raging on in the background as he whispers to TON-EE, and starts to fly, feeling the armor shift as it turns and flips, the retroreflective panels going into place and turning him mostly invisible to the naked eye. Normally he wouldn't fly when in this mode, his replusors and their glow would give him away, but he's hoping the battle will be enough of a distraction to where nobody will notice. Or, if they do, they'll ignore it for the time being, and assume he's just another ally. He makes sure he's high above the battle, making sure to keep an eye on the flyers around him- Falcon is dropping grenades and bombs further into enemy territory, and Ant-Man, while huge, couldn't move very fast, so he should be fine- as he zooms into the warzone, moving quickly and efficiently, watching as the red dot gets bigger, closer.

He feels something out of the corner of his eye, in his blind spot, and he jerks backwards at the last second, just as a _giant white Pegasus_ flies past him, a woman on its back and a higher pitched scream of "woAH-" flying past afterwards, hanging from- from a _web_ , Harley freezes, realizes, watching Spider-Man, watching _Peter_ cling to the web as he gets thrown around haphazardly, hanging off of the horse, clutching onto what he _knows_ is the infinity gauntlet, remembers from when Peter told him so all those years ago, a few months after all of this. Told him that he had it, that he should've held onto it when _Carol_ asked for it, should've gotten the stones and used it himself, should've saved everyone himself, he mightve survived it after all but Harley had only felt fear, knowing that he wouldn't have. He shakes the memory away, and follows the swirving horse, the clinging spider, knowing it'll lead him straight to where he needs to be.

The thing was, Harley had forgotten _why_ Peter had fallen to the ground, _why_ Carol had gotten the chance to ask him for the gauntlet, only remembering when he hears a scream of "Look out!" Before all hell breaks loose, canons shooting down from the sky and exploding to the ground, shaking the earth beneath him.

" _Shit!_ " He tries to fly out of the trajectory, tries to get out of the battlefield while still staying close, but his leg gets nipped by the beam, he gets thrown off balance, and then he's falling, and crashes to the ground with a loud bang that's sounds quiet compared to the booms of the canons, of the tremors of the earth he can now feel beneath his fingertips, his entire body shuttering with the ground. He groans, his body searing with pain, before his mind reboots and the panic sets in. He checks the storage area, sighing with relief when the vial is still in tact, before checking his system to see whats broken, what's working, whats still up. His back replusor is down, so his flight system is gone, but outside of that, it seems everything is still working, and he breathes out a sigh of relief. Its okay, he can still do this, he'll just- have to find his way on land, he'll just have to be more careful.

He glances around, the earth still exploding around him, hearing wails of pain from people he can't even see, dust scattering in the air and blood seeping into the dirt, his stomach churning at the sight and his ears ringing as he tries to focus, stepping forward to run into the field, to find his way to Tony just as the tracker system reappears in his field of vision, just as he sees the red dot basically overtaking the screen, just as he's grabbed and is suddenly in flight, weaving through the air in somebody's arms.

Before Harley can even struggle, he's being dropped, the two suits landing back down at the same time, and Harley turns, his eyes widening as he sees the signature red and gold, scruffed and marked and dirty from the fight, the bright blue glow of the arc reactor, and the two eye slits that disappear as his visor retracts and suddenly Harley is stumbling because _oh my god, he did this, this is it, this is- he is-_

"Kid?? Is that you?" Tony asks, voice full of wonder and awe, full of bewilderment and concern, his iries a little darker, softer than he remembered, his hair and beard full of gray hairs and his face full of wrinkles from smiling, laughing, crying, and he's so real, _this is real,_ that Harley can't help the sob that bubbles out of his chest, that slips past his lips. He can hear Tony still talking to him, saying something about Harley's suit, but he doesn't even hear it, _can't_ hear it as he stumbles forward and pulls the man into a tight hug, his body lurching forward in another silence cry, tears flowing down his pushed up cheeks harder when he feels the warmth beneath his fingertips, the smooth metal and the feeling of skin and stubble against his cheek and he's here, he's okay, he's _alive_. "Harley?" The man murmurs quieter, sounded so confused but also not questioning, seemingly not caring as he pulls the younger man closer, running a hand down his back and pressing a kiss to the side of his head. "Bud?"

"I'm sorry," He blurts out, and he doesn't even know why he says it, but he needs him to know, needs him to. "I'm sorry. I just-" He rubs at his eye with a free hand, burrowing his face into Tony's neck, feeling the rapid bump of a heartbeat beneath his skin and sobbing again. "I missed you so much." Its a whisper, under his breath, one he doesn't mean for Tony to hear, but its clear he does, the man stiffening up for a few seconds before untensing with a shaky breath, tugging Harley even closer.

They don't say anything else for a while, Tony clearly thinking, putting together pieces of a situation he shouldn't even know, that Harley never should have told him, but he can't care, doesn't care right now as he feels Tony move, feels his chest rise and fall with each breath, feels the heat beneath his skin, feels his jaw moving and his cheek shifting as he blinks, and breaths, and _l_ _ives_. Harley could stay here forever, and be happy, but he knows he can't, knows that isn't how this day should, or can, go.

"What year are you from?" The older man questions, finally breaking the silence between them as he seemingly put the puzzle together, and Harley releases a shaky exhale, shutting his eyes, longing to block out the world and live in this moment forever.

"2029," He answers anyways, honestly, and suddenly Tony snorts, Harley furrowing his eyebrows at the seemingly random sound until-

"2029? Come on, that's not a real year."

Harley bursts into chuckles, unexpectedly, and from the grin it places on Tony's face, that was the purpose of the tease. "I _mean_ it, old man. 2029."

Tony lets out a noise similar to a squawk at the old man comment, and lightly smacks the back of his head as Harley snickers, feeling so light and warm, he missed this, he missed this feeling so much, and seemingly sensing the sadness lingering under Harleys skin, the mood darkens again, their voices quieting again as Tony whispers, "2029, wow."

"Yeah," Harley whispers back, feeling the heaviness in the air on his back, his shoulders, his lungs, almost suffocating him with its thickness.

"So you're... 24?"

"23." He corrects, as Tony finally steps back and Harleys fingers twitch to pull him back in, as Tony's hand grabs his chin lightly, a thumb rubbing his cheek in a soothing, paternal gesture, his eyes softening even more, growing shiny in the faint gray light.

"All grown up."

Harley hums in affirmation, ignoring the way the back of his eyes start burning again, his heart swelling. "I have a kid, a son." Now that he has the chance, everything just seems to be spilling out of him without filter.

Tony's eyes widen and his face glows with a pride that makes Harley's shoulders shutter again, even as his smile widens far enough to break his face. "A son, huh?"

"Yeah, me and- me and Peter adopted him a few months ago, his name is Jackson Anthony, and- and he's _perfect_ , Tony, he's perfect, he's so small, and sweet, and he barely cries, he's like a _dream._ " And that he's started, he can't seem to stop, spilling quickly about Jax, and about Peter, the wedding, their life and how wonderful it is, how much he loves them, but before he knows it, he's biting his tongue and freezing into place, words on the tip of his tongue that he dare not let out, he _can't_ , his chest feeling heavy and aching as he thinks, ' _God I wish you could've been there'._

Tony just smiles, tight and sad, like he knows what he's thinking, like he _knows_ what happens, and brushes another tear off his cheek as he asks, soft and low, "Harley, why are you here? Why did you come back?" And Harley just stares at him, begging and pleading him to understand without him having to say it, and when the mans face shutters, his eyes darkening and his smile tilting into a light frown, he knows that he does. "Kid-"

"I couldn't-" He shakes his head, clenching and unclenching his hands rapidly. "I had a chance, Tony, and I had to, I _have_ to-"

"You can't, bub." Tony murmurs, and Harley just shakes his head again, harder, firmer.

"I _have to._ "

"You _c_ _an't_." He restates, holding onto Harley's arms tightly and forcing him to make eye contact, to look him in the eyes even if Harley wants to look anywhere else, wants to think of any other way, any other option than _this_. "This is my destiny, kid."

"It doesn't _have_ to be, there has to be another way," Harley pleads, "Captain Marvel could survive the snap, I did the calculations, if I just get the glove to her-"

Tony just shakes his head too, looking eerily serious, sullen. "It could change too much, it could change everything, Harley-"

"So? You'd survive-"

"You have a _husband_ , and _a kid-_ "

" _So did you!"_ Harley spits back, shaking off Tony's hold and glaring at him, even as he shakes, and swallows around a lump in his throat. "You had Pepper, and Morgan, and- and Peter, and _me_ and you just- you _still_ want to just-"

All of the fight rushes out of him, and his shoulders slump, his head held low and salt pooling at his chin, dripping to the floor. Tony takes a step forward, and carefully places a hand onto Harleys shoulder, stating calmly, accepting, "I made my choice, kid. And I don't regret it." When Harley peers up at it, face scrunched up in agony, Tony continues, soft and sad. "How can I, when I get to see this? When I know you and Peter are so happy, when I-" He swallows. "When I hope Pepper has moved on, and Morgan has got the chance to grow up with his two older brothers." He squeezes Harley's face, and gives him a smile made only for him, full of honest, open love. "How can I regret any of it, when I know all of my family is together again?"

"Without _you_." Harley chokes out, and Tony's smile stays, shrugs once.

"If thats the price to pay, I'll pay it. I told myself I'd do anything, _anything_ to get you and Peter back. I knew it was worth it, worth anything, and now, _this_ ," He rubs Harleys cheek as he crumbles with another agonizing sob, "Now I know for sure. It was worth it. It was all worth it."

Harley falls into his arms again, wailing loudly into his chest, and Tony just soothes him, shushes him quietly and holds him close. "I miss you so _much,_ "

"I know," He murmurs faintly.

"I _love you so much_." He sobs, and Tony just presses a harder kiss to his head, and holds it there for a few seconds, liquid dripping onto his head.

"I love you too, polpetta. More than you'll ever know."

"I don't know if I can- can _lose you again_."

Tony doesn't answer this time, and Harley cries harder, his entire body tremoring just like the ground did, knowing, _knowing_ he has to back, knowing he cant change Tony's mind, but aching, his heart shattering and crumbling into pieces of dust similar to the compound surrounding them, and it takes a few more minutes, a few more moments of a hug so tight it makes his muscles whine, his bone creak, before Tony tells him quietly, melancholy. "You gotta to back, Harls."

He squeezes the man again, nodding, knowing he's right, knowing his husband his back there in the garage waiting for him, knowing his son is in his cradle, fast asleep, knowing his life is waiting for him back home. He savors the last few seconds of holding his father, his _dad_ in his arms, before he steps back. Tony gives him a grin, one last, big toothy smile, a complete contrast to the shine in his eyes, on his cheeks, and Harley smiles back, saying one last "I love you," and hearing it echoed in return.

"I love you too. Both of you, all of you."

He takes the vial out of the storage slot, putting into place, and glances up _o_ _ne last time,_ searing all of Tony's features into his mind, into memory, his words echoing in his head as he presses the button, whispers a goodbye, and shrinks.

The return back is much faster, Harley only getting a blink before he's back in his garage, the room a mess similar to how he left it, and the first thing he sees is Peter, his husband, the _love of his life_ still stood in the very same place, in the doorway of the garage, his baby browns wide and teary, looking so fearful, so scared, yet so thankful that Harley _returned_.

"Harley?!?" He gasps, and Harley barely gives his suit time to retract before he's rushing forward and crashing into Peter, Peter already into soothing mode and whispering faint reassures, to himself or to harley he doesn't know, Harley crumbling again in his arms and sputtering out, over and over and over, "He loves you, he loves us, loves us so much." Like its the last chance he'd ever get to say it again.

Peter just holds him close, similar to the way his dad did only moments before, and Harley sinks into the warmth, vowing to live in the here and the now from now on. To live in the moment, and be there for his husband and his son, knowing that Tony was watching over them, with that same proud smile and little glint in his eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> Based (and named) around the song: Monster by Beth Crowley


End file.
